The Black Ops 7 Zombies beta is live! Time for some feedback and impressions. I’ve tried to combine the two in a way that isn’t a slog to read. I hope I don’t bore any developers who stumble upon this.
As expected, Black Ops 7 Zombies gameplay feels like a more refined version of Black Ops 6 Zombies. That might feel underwhelming for some, but I think it’s a solid foundation for the year ahead, and Cursed Mode is sure to mix things up more for us diehards.
The balance changes to Armoured Zombies and the reduction of super sprinters both make training fun again. Unfortunately, building off Black Ops 6 means weapons still become weak in Round 30 onwards. Despite triple Pack-a-Punching my legendary Echo 12 shotgun and Ray Gun Mark II, it took a long time to move through the rounds. I also barely noticed the difference between PAP Tier 2 and PAP Tier 3—more can be done to make each tier feel like a worthwhile upgrade.
Although the rounds lasted longer than I’d have liked because of weak weaponry, the limited pool of equipment at the Crafting Bench made the higher rounds a more enjoyable challenge. While I reckon this was intentional for the Beta, I wouldn’t be against a restricted equipment pool for specific Survival Mode maps.
I enjoyed my time against both of the new enemies. The Ravagers make for a relentless Max Ammo round, but I did encounter a few issues: in one instance, a single, lonely Ravager appeared, making it one of the shortest Max Ammo rounds I’ve ever played. Another time, the Ravager disappeared without dropping a Max Ammo.
The Zursa is as intimidating as the trailer made it out to be. It’s absolutely lethal in the later rounds, and the rush to safety after it swipes you and stuns your health regen was a constant source of fear and adrenaline.
The only thing I’m not sold on is the Zombees. I found the visual effects of the bees when they’re on the ground a little tricky to make out, which led me to run directly into them a few times. With Ashes of the Damned’s massive playspace, it makes sense to have an enemy with a ranged attack, but I hope we see less sniping from enemies in post-launch maps.
The Doppelghast has broken the internet again, but I don’t have much of an issue with its use (much like I was a fan of how it appeared in Reckoning). One appearing every single round after its first spawn may be a bit over the top, though. I like the idea of random enemies appearing to spice up the monotony of higher rounds, but it must be balanced delicately.
It’s worth remembering that this is Survival Mode, not a round-based map. I’m less concerned about enemy reuse since the whole point of Survival is to be a quick hit of Zombies. If Ashes of the Damned is full of special enemy spam beyond Ravagers and Zursa, though, we may have a problem. I’m hoping every new round-based map in Black Ops 7 will have unique special or elite enemies, and recurring ones in that mode will be close to non-existent.
There’s also the potential wrinkle that each Survival map will feature a different combination of previous enemies (e.g Doppelghasts on Farm, Klaus Bots on Janus Towers), which would diversify each experience. I’m not sure how viable it’d be to rotate different enemies each season, but it would be a fun way to refresh some of the early Survival Maps once they start to feel stale in later seasons.
The Zombies HUD has been a huge point of contention since Call of Duty NEXT. Who am I kidding? It’s been like this since Black Ops 4!
I always want a HUD to meet two key criteria: it should be informational and aesthetically pleasing. Black Ops 7’s HUD is halfway there. All the essential information is present and neatly located. It just looks like it belongs to an entirely different game.
I like having a health bar, but the segmented chunks of health stick out like a sore thumb. It fits the futuristic warfare in multiplayer, but the Dark Aether? Not so much. I’d rather it be a solid bar that goes up and down as you take damage and heal. Segments might work quite nicely for the Field Upgrade charge bar, but maybe only four or five of them instead of twenty-odd.
The text, along with some of the tool tips and pop-ups, appears squashed and difficult to read. The weapon name, ammo counter, and PAP rarity could all benefit from a size increase.
I was disheartened to see waypoint markers for something as simple as turning the power on in Survival. We’ve been asking for a way to remove these since the launch of Black Ops 6! I’d prefer if they were removed entirely for every mode outside of Directed Mode, but I’d settle for a toggleable option in the settings. Please.
Obviously, we know Black Ops 7 has various themes that can be assigned to the HUD. This will help with some of the community’s concerns, but we don’t know what they’ll look like in action. It’d be great to see a few examples during gameplay as soon as possible. If there’s a Zombies-specific theme that isn’t based on nostalgia, I wouldn’t be against it being set as the default theme for Zombies. The MP HUD ruins the immersion, which is a shame when so much work has gone into making Black Ops 7 an atmospheric Dark Aether experience.
The Saw Blade trap is a handy tool for surviving the later rounds, and its damage and cooldown are generous, but I’m not a fan of the plastic doll on top. It’s generic-looking and doesn’t really feel like Zombies. Mr Peeks would look much better on top of the trap, and we know he loves his music. Maybe there’s more to the doll in Ashes of the Damned? If so, fair enough. But if not, let Peeks bust some moves.
It’s a small thing, you could even call it a nitpick, but it adds up alongside other clashing visuals (like the Warzone-style armour plating, I’d love to see that replaced by something more unique eventually). I think it’s worth looking into. The change to the Max Ammo crate makes such a big difference, so don’t stop there.
I played Zombies until I reached the Round 50 Dark Ops challenge, and I don’t plan to return to it. Not because I didn’t enjoy myself, but because I just wanted to play a tiny bit of Zombies, share my immediate thoughts, and then wait for the full experience at launch. I’m sure many of my Zombies compadres will have much more feedback as the beta progresses!
This might be controversial, but I’m still not sure Zombies even needs a beta and a gameplay showcase at Call of Duty NEXT. I think a Closed Playtest with members of the Zombies Community would be a much better way to gather feedback without losing the air of mystique around Zombies (and it would prevent any more “We need you in Verdansk” hiccups).
That said, I greatly appreciate the steps taken to preserve the Day One experience as much as possible, such as Survival Mode only and no Zombies operators. Some things are still sacred, and long may it continue!
I’ve really enjoyed the multiplayer, although I don’t have much feedback beyond wanting the TTK to be increased (which Treyarch has already discussed). The maps are a step up from last year, and the game feels like a beautiful combination of Black Ops 2, 4, and 6. I was never much of a jetpack/boost COD fan, but I’m loving the wall jump mechanic. It’s the perfect amount of advanced movement for my liking.
So, those are my thoughts after a small taste of Black Ops 7 Zombies. I was already looking forward to the whole shebang next month, but the wait has just become a lot more difficult. There’ll be ups and downs—there always are—but if Treyarch continues to be as responsive as it has been recently, I’m optimistic Black Ops 7 will be a strong year of Zombies.
